Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman, on Monday launched the asset monetisation pipeline of Central ministries and public sector entities: ‘National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP Volumes 1 & 2)’.

The pipeline has been developed by NITI Aayog, in consultation with infrastructure line ministries, based on the mandate for ‘Asset Monetisation’ under Union Budget 2021-22. NMP estimates aggregate monetisation potential of Rs 6.0 lakh crores through core assets of the Central Government, over a four-year period, from FY 2022 to FY 2025.

Volumes 1 and 2 of the report on NMP was released today in the presence of Vice Chairman (NITI Aayog), CEO (NITI Aayog), and Secretaries of infrastructure line ministries included under the pipeline—Roads, Transport and Highways, Railways, Power, Pipeline and Natural Gas, Civil Aviation, Shipping Ports and Waterways, Telecommunications, Food and Public Distribution, Mining, Coal and Housing and Urban Affairs—along with Secretary (Department of Economic Affairs) and Secretary (Department of Investment and Public Asset Management).

Union Minister of Finance, while launching the pipeline, said, “Asset monetisation, based on the philosophy of Creation through Monetisation, is aimed at tapping private sector investment for new infrastructure creation. This is necessary for creating employment opportunities, thereby enabling high economic growth and seamlessly integrating the rural and semi-urban areas for overall public welfare.”

Sitharaman further enumerated the reforms and initiatives undertaken by the current Government towards accelerated infrastructure development and for incentivizing private sector investments.

This included the recent ‘Scheme of Financial Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure’, which incentivizes State Governments to recycle State Government-owned asset for fast-tracking greenfield infrastructure.

“The strategic objective of the programme is to unlock the value of investments in brownfield public sector assets by tapping institutional and long-term patient capital, which can thereafter be leveraged for further public investments,” Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog, said during the launch.

He emphasized on the modality of such unlocking, which is envisaged to be by way of structured contractual partnership as against privatization or slump sale of assets.